The Time Is Now...here's your weekly poetry and fiction prompts to keep you writing all year long. Let's get to it!

POETRY PROMPT

The late English poet Philip Larkin was born eighty-nine years ago this month. Begin a poem using the first lines of Larkin's oft-studied poem "Church Going," from The Less Deceived (Marvell Press, 1955): "Once I am sure there's nothing going on / I step inside, letting the door thud shut."

FICTION PROMPT

Go for a walk, paying careful attention to your surroundings, until you find something that doesn't belong. It could be a piece of garbage on the street, a coin, an animal, a car battery in the woods, anything out of place. Tell the story of how it got there.

THE BEST BOOKS FOR WRITERS

Each week we recommend a book--a newly published title or an invaluable classic--that will help you on your writing journey. This week's pick:

Poets & Writers is the primary source of information, support, and guidance for creative writers. Founded in 1970, it is the nation's largest nonprofit literary organization for poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers. Learn more at pw.org.